Martin Mere and Parkgate

Myself and Dave had a great day out in the winter sunshine heading to Martin Mere and Parkgate Marsh. We were straight onto 9 Corn Buntings at Martin Mere but I could get any shots as the sun was behind them. We headed into the reserve and had great views of a roosting Tawny Owl. There were good numbers of Whooper Swan, Wigeon, Pintail, and Pinkfooted Goose. There were 3 Peregrine looking like two adults and a juvenile and we watched the large female eating a freshly caught Teal. Before leaving we went back to see if we could see any more Corn Buntings and we were rewarded with a flock of around 25, one of which flew to a nearby bush allowing some decent shots. We then headed to Parkgate on the Dee estuary and had excellent views of several female Hen Harriers plus 2 Merlin one of which chased a small bird up onto the sky and swooped at it several times but didn't catch its prey

20131130 103731 from Anthony Capuano on Vimeo.

Peregrine at Martin Mere from Anthony Capuano on Vimeo.



Corn Bunting at Martin Mere from Anthony Capuano on Vimeo.



Corn Bunting at Martin Mere from Anthony Capuano on Vimeo.

Red Breasted Goose

Myself and Dave Evans went up to Dumfries on Saturday 25th. Feb on a wild goose chase. We stopped off at Sizergh castle first and had rubbish views of several Hawfinch. Up in Scotland we had a look for the Ross's Goose at Caerlaverock WWT but failed. What a great reserve though. Fantastic to see so many wintering Barnacle Geese and the hides were all superb. We had good views of Whooper Swans, Pintail and Wigeon.

We then headed to Southerness point and spent hours staring at thousands of barnacle geese before locating the Red Breasted Goose. What a fabulous looking goose. We also saw a Red Kite. Overall we were impressed with the Solway Firth and its also pretty quick to get to so I'm sure we will be back again soon.

Glossy Ibis!

Went to Leighton Moss ( again!!)  and were straight onto the Glossy Ibis showing very well near the rail crossing. We then went onto Heysham and got decent views of the juvenile Glaucous Gull and got some useful tips from local birder Pete Cook about where to go for the best views of the harbour. Then it was onto Fleetwood marine lake for the Long Tailed Duck. We also had the best views of a pair of Red Breasted Mergansers I have ever had!
Before returning home myself and cousin Dave decided to check out Marton mere. There were plenty of Teal, Pochard, and Wigeon. We also glimpsed a distant Sparrowhawk. Talking to some local birders they mentioned that a pair of Bewick Swans had been seen in a field close by and sure enough we located them along with 2 Mute Swans.
Overall an excellent day out in good warm conditions and a total of 4 new species to add to our lists.

I saw plenty of migrating thrushes in small groups as I headed to Anglers Country Park. On arrival I could hear lots of finches and sparrows and got some good views of the many tree sparrows present. There were redwings around and good numbers of wigeon on the water. I saw a brief glimpse of a kingfisher as it flew low across the water and enjoyed watching a female kestrel hunting.

                                                             COMMON KESTREL

                                                                    TREE SPARROW

                                                                     WIDGEON